Osmosis video - Antibiotics - Beta lactam and beta lactamase inhibitor combinations: Nursing pharmacology

Beta-lactam antibiotics, named after their beta-lactam ring in their chemical structure, are a type of antibiotic that kills bacteria. Beta-lactamase is an enzyme that these bacteria produce to disable beta-lactam antibiotics. Beta-lactamase inhibitors are another type of antibiotic that are co-administered with beta-lactam antibiotics, to prevent bacteria from disabling these antibiotics using their enzymes.

The combination of a beta-lactam and a beta-lactamase inhibitor is called a "beta-lactam/beta-lactamase inhibitor" (BL/BLI) combination. BL/BLI combinations are used to treat many types of infections, including lung infections, skin infections, urinary tract infections, and stomach infections.